The British Fashion Council have finally unveiled ten menswear designer names who will receive sponsorship and support from the NEWGEN MEN initiative sponsored by Topman.

The recipients of NEWGEN MEN, sponsored by Topman are:

Catwalk (shows will take place in the BFC Show Space):
Christopher Shannon
James Long
JW Anderson

Presentations (presentations will take place in the Portico Rooms):
Carolyn Massey
Lou Dalton
Sibling

Installations (installations will take place in the Navy Boardrooms):
Christopher Raeburn
James Small
Katie Eary
Omar Kashoura

Menswear is often overlooked, it is the last day of London Fashion Week, this September it is on the Wednesday 22nd, and there is never as much hype around menswear shows. NEWGEN strives to turn this around for British Menswear; NEWGEN MEN was launched in September 2009. Last season only four designers received sponsorship this season ten! The NEWGEN committee is made up of key figures from media and retail. This season the panel included BFC CEO (Joint) and Panel Chair Simon Ward; Anna Orsini, BFC; Gordon Richardson, Topman; Jason Griffiths, Topman; Antony Miles, 10 Magazine; Alister Mackie, Another Magazine; Charlie Porter, Fantastic Man; Jeremy Langmead, Esquire; Lulu Kennedy, Fashion East/MAN; Patrick Grant, Norton & Sons; Robert Johnston, GQ; Terry Betts, Harvey Nichols and Tim Blanks, Style.com.

Tim Blanks, Contributing Editor, Style.com and a member of the British Fashion Council's Menswear Committee said, “Menswear is on the move all over the world. It's almost as though some kind of group mind dictated that here was an opportunity to do something new, and that seems to have sparked the creativity of young designers…That air is thickened by the knowledge that London is also, in many ways, the home of men's fashion as we know it.  Which means that the menswear community here embraces all sorts, from the Savile Row traditionalist to the Hackney rebel, with a platoon of jewellers, hatters, knitters and cobblers as artisanal satellites.”

YshLondon is particularly proud of Chris Raeburn, his installation last season across Somerset House was stunning so we are looking forward to this season's new collection and installation.

YshLondon is also looking forward to JW Anderson's catwalk. We were pleasantly surprised last season with his menswear collection. My personal favorite was his traditional argyle knits underneath sheer organza fabrics. The juxtaposition between the dense chunky and heavy knit against the lightweight and delicate organza was surprisingly successful. JW Anderson's collection also featured punk/rock edginess so YshLondon is keen to see what he does next.

Sibling is also another surprise to the list. We featured their work last season in our blog and really enjoyed their technical quirky knits. YshLondon has been told to watch out for leopard twin sets and neon mink detailing so we are eager to view their off-the-wall collection for SS11. Good Luck Sibling, we have high expectations!

Images Courtesy of YshLondon.com